Cessna 152 N4922P accident near Easton, Maryland

Probable cause

The use of an improper nose landing gear through bolt, which decreased the overall strength of the gear and resulted in overload failure during a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the student pilot's inadequate landing flare, which resulted in the hard landing.

NTSB analysis

The student pilot was landing at the first of two intended stops on the solo cross-country flight. She stated that she felt the main landing gear touch down on the runway first, followed by the nose landing gear. The airplane bounced, and the student pilot subsequently observed the airplane's nosewheel rolling down the runway in front of the airplane. The airplane settled back onto the runway and came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine firewall. An air traffic controller who observed the landing stated that the airplane touched down, porpoised, and bounced twice before impacting the runway at what appeared to be a steep angle.

Postaccident examination revealed that the nosewheel exhibited impact damage to the rim. Postaccident examination of the nose landing gear assembly revealed that the landing gear through bolt had fractured in shear overload. Further examination revealed that the bolt measured 5/16 inch in diameter. However, the bolt manufacturer specified that a 7/16-inch-diameter bolt should be used. Review of maintenance records could not determine when the 5/16-inch bolt was installed or how many hours of operation the airplane had accrued since the installation. Additionally, the bolt head was not recovered, and it could not be determined if the 5/16-inch bolt installed on the airplane met standard aircraft specifications. Generally, a 5/16-inch bolt would be expected to have half of the shear strength rating of a 7/16-inch bolt.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA13LA379 for the full record.